Plant a tree donation

January 3, 2018 6:44 AM

I'd like to give a gift to someone in the form of a tree or trees planted in their name but I'm having trouble finding the best charity/service to use. Does anyone have direct experience with this?

I found several services just by googling, but none of them showed up on Charity Watch, so I'm looking for something vetted.

posted by gwint to Science & Nature (8 answers total)

The Jewish National Fund excels at this. I have used the Canadian JNF for this many, many times, and their level of service is excellent, particularly with their followup and notification process. There are options available for different forests and such.
posted by Capt. Renault at 6:58 AM on January 3, 2018 [3 favorites]

Trees for Life
posted by rd45 at 7:13 AM on January 3, 2018

You could look into a botanical garden or local park. They often have patrons that request a "memorial" for a deceased loved one, including a tree or trees planted or a bench with a plaque. There isn't a specific charity that does this, but you can call the organization directly and ask about it.
posted by strelitzia at 7:19 AM on January 3, 2018

Penny pines (pdf)- for $68 you can have an acre reforested. Near little program of the Forest Service, my school age cousins collect for them (and you get an ordinary but nice certificate for donation). Zero overhead every penny (ha) goes to buying trees which are planted by agency employees and volunteers.
posted by stewiethegreat at 7:45 AM on January 3, 2018 [1 favorite]

Trees For the Future may be worth a look.
posted by SaltySalticid at 10:04 AM on January 3, 2018

I'd like to recommend Friends of Trees. They plant tons of trees each year, both on private and public property. We've got a beautiful big-leaf maple out front, courtesy of Friends of Trees. They are local to Portland Oregon, but serve other parts of the state as well. They don't just plant the trees. They educate and help take care of the trees.
posted by hydra77 at 10:15 AM on January 3, 2018

I've been happy with the Arbor Day Foundation, which has an A- rating at Charity Watch.
posted by Iris Gambol at 12:06 PM on January 3, 2018

Check with your local Parks and Recreation agency. They often do this.
posted by Shohn at 2:46 PM on January 3, 2018